TP 
329 
T4 


UC-NRLF 


DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE,  INSURANCE,  STATISTICS  AM)  HISTORY. 

GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY  OF  TEXAS. 

|tiN    I'.     IIOl.I.INT.SVVORTH.  Commissioiirr          }-\.  T     DUM     [.] 


PRELIMINARY  REPORT 


UTILIZATION    OF   LIGNITE 


E     T.    I)  ('  M  BLE. 


A  UST1N: 
UKSIiV    Ill'TruiNGS,  STA'I  K    I'KIM'Kl 

-   • 


PRELIMINARY  REPORT 

ON  THE 

UTILIZATION   OF  LIGNITES. 


E.  T.  DUMBLE,  STATE  GEOLOGIST. 


Hon.  John  E.  Hollingsworth,  Commissioner  of  Agriculture,  Insurance,  Statistics 
and  History: 

SIR — In  accordance  with  your  instructions,  under  an  act  of  the  Leg- 
islature directing  an  investigation  into  the  methods  of  using  lignite  in 
Europe,  I  visited  the  principal  deposits  of  browncoals  in  German}'  and 
Austria,  compared  the  different  varieties  with  those  of  Texas,  and  ex- 
amined the  various  methods  of  utilizing  them. 

While  the  limited  time  which  I  could  give  to  this  investigation  pre- 
vented my  visiting  the  deposits  of  France  and  Italy,  the  results  are  so 
satisfactory,  full  and  conclusive,  that  an  inspection  of  these  localities 
was  not  absolutely  necessary,  although  it  would  doubtless  have  been 
instructive  in  many  ways. 

Throughout  my  entire  trip  I  met  with  the  kindest  attention  and  with 
the  most  ready  and  valuable  assistance  from  the  geologists  and  mining 
officers,  both  public  and  private;  and  it  was  only  through  the  opportu- 
nities thus  afforded  that  I  was  enabled,  in  the  time  at  my  disposal,  to 
cover  so  much  ground  and  gather  the  necessary  information.  In  the  fol- 
lowing report,  which  must  be  regarded  as  merely  preliminary,!  have  sum- 
marized the  results  of  my  investigations.  As  soon  as  I  can  prepare  it, 
a  full  report  will  be  made  which  will  contain  many  details,  references 
and  descriptions  which  cannot  be  included  here. 

EUROPEAN  BROWNCOAL. 

The  browncoal  of  Europe  may  be  divided  into  four  general  classes, 
viz.:  1,  Lignite;  2,  Common  Browncoal;  .  3,  Pech  Coal;  4,  Glance 
Coal — all  of  which  have  representatives  in  Texas. 

LIGNITE. 

In  Germany  and  Austria  this  term  is  only  used  to  designate  such 
fossil  fuel  as  fully  retains  its  woody  character  and  fiber.  It  is  usually 
found  accompanying  other  varieties  of  browncoal,  and  consists  of  those 
fragments  of  the  original  woody  material  from  which  the  beds  were 
formed  that  have  escaped  maceration  and  decomposition.  In  some 
places,  however,  when  conditions  were  favorable  to  its  preservation  it 
forms  the  main  body  of  the  deposit.  Sometimes  it  occurs  surrounded 
by  earthy  browncoal,  and  often  has  particles  of  fatty  browncoal  or  jet 
inclosed  with  it,  following  the  rings  of  growth.  Much  of  it  as  it  comes 


043 


2  UTILIZATION   OF  LIGNITES. 

from  the  mine  retains  its  form  and  character  so  completely  as  to  be 
almost  indistinguishable  from  the  ordinary  wood  of  the  present  time, 
except  that  it  is  somewhat  darker  in  color. 

COMMON     BROWNCOAL. 

This  name  covers  a  number  of  varieties,  varying  in  color  from  yellow 
to  brownish  black,  and  from  those  having  a  specific  gravity  less  than 
water  to  those  of  1.2  and  1.3.  Their  common  qualities  are  their  large 
percentage  of  water  and  their  earthy,  friable  nature.  The  two  most 
important  of  these  varieties  are  "Schweelkohl"  and  Earthy  Brown- 
coal. 

SCHWEEL  COAL. — This  variety,  in  its  purest  form,  resembles  a  yel- 
low clay  much  more  closely  than  it  does  coal.  Its  composition  and 
character,  as  revealed  by  chemical  analysis  and  the  microscope,  vary 
somewhat  from  the  other  browncoals,  and  it  is  the  variety  which  has 
the  least  specific  gravity.  It  is  the  richest  in  tarry  matter,  and  is 
therefore  especially  desirable  for  the  manufacture  of  paraffine  and  oils. 
It  occurs  most  frequently  with  earthy  browncoal  and  often  in  alternat- 
ing layers  with  that  variety. 

EARTHY  BROWNCOAL. — This  variety  of  browncoal  is,  as  its  name 
indicates,  of  an  earthy  character,  brown  to  brownish  black  in  color,  in 
its  ordinary  condition  containing  as  much  as  forty-five  or  even  fifty 
per  cent  of  moisture.  While  it  somewhat  resembles  our  Texas  brown- 
coal,  especially  in  the  fatty  streaks  which  occur  in  it,  the  German  is 
much  more  friable  than  ours  and  also  much  inferior  to  it  in  heat- 
ing value  in  the  raw  state  on  account  of  the  great  percentage  of  water 
it  contains.  This  is  the  character  of  browncoal  that  is  found  most 
largely  developed  in  the  district  around  Halle,  a.  S. ,  and  in  the  Rhine 
provinces.  Much  of  it  lies  very  near  the  surface,  in  beds  varying  from 
a  few  inches  to  sixty  feet  in  thickness,  and  is  most  often  mixed  with 
Schweel  coal  to  a  greater  or  less  extent.  From  this  variety  of  brown  - 
coal  is  manufactured  the  "  nass-press-stein  "  and  browncoal  briquettes 
without  bond. 

PECH   COAL. 

A  darker  and  firmer  variety  of  browncoal,  which  contains  a  smaller 
amount  of  water,  and  which  often  closely  resembles  pitch  both  in  color 
and  fracture,  is  called  Pech  coal.  The  coal  of  the  Bohemian  basins  is 
very  largely  a  mixture  of  common  browncoal  (of  somewhat  drier  na- 
ture than  the  German)  and  Pech  coal,  together  with  some  lignite,  and 
is  the  equivalent  of  the  larger  part  of  our  Texas  deposits. 

GLANCE  COAL. 

This  is  the  finest  variety  of  lignitic  or  browncoal,  in  certain  instan 
ces  passing  into  jet.  It  occurs  principally  in  Styria  with  other  varie- 
ties of  browncoal,  although  smaller  quantities  occur  in  many  locali- 
ties. 

These  varieties  are  again  subdivided  into  minor  divisions,  and  they 
pass  by  insensible  gradations  one  into  the  other,  frequently  in  one  and 
the  same  bed. 

STATISTICS. 
The  following  statistics,  taken  from  the  government  reports  of  the 


UTILIZATION  OF  LIGNITES.  3 

empires  of  Germany  and  Austria,  show  to  what  extent  these  brown- 
coals  were  used  during  the  year  1890: 

Tons  mined.  Value  at  mine. 

Germany. 15,468,434  $9,967,812  00 

Austria.. 15,329,056  12,482,603  00 


Total.. 30,697,490  $22,450,415  00 

Of  which — 

Rhine  Provinces 661,590  $381,139  00 

Halle,  a.  S 14,077,382  9,031,238  00 

Styria.. • 2,270,023  2,942,327  00 

Bohemia 12,190,932  8,240,780  00 

This  amount,  over  three  hundred  thousand  car  loads,  is  nearly  thirty 
per  cent  of  the  entire  coal  (stone  coal  and  browncoal)  production  of 
these  empires,  which  was  (for  1890)  104,702,370  tons.  Of  the  total 
amount  of  browncoal  mined,  the  district  around  Halle,  Germany,  and 
Bohemia  and  Styria,  in  Austria,  produced  eighty  per  cent. 

The  amount  of  browncoal  used  in  the  manufacture  of  briquettes, 
coal  bricks,  tar,  paraffine,  etc.,  during  the  year  was  a  little  less  than 
seven  million  tons,  and  the  remainder — over  twenty-three  million  tons 
— was  used  "raw,"  or  just  as  it  came  from  the  mine,  without  prepara- 
tion of  any  kind. 

USES  OF  EUROPEAN  BROWNCOAL. 

As  has  already  been  stated  in  our  circular  No.  8  and  in  the  various 
reports  of  this  Survey,  the  uses  of  browncoal  are  as  varied,  general  and 
important  as  those  of  stone  coal.  The  results  of  my  personal  investi- 
gations not  only  fully  confirm  the  statements  made  heretofore  by  my- 
self and  other  members  of  the  Survey,  in  regard  to  the  availability  of 
the  Texas  browncoal  for  fuel  purposes,  but  add  greatly  to  them. 

LIGNITE. 

When  lignite  is  found  in  sufficient  quantity,  it  is  charred  in  meilers, 
kilns  or  retorts,  in  the  same  manner  as  ordinary  wood,  and  yields  a 
charcoal  of  similar  quality  and  equally  suitable  for  all  fuel  purposes. 
Thus,  in  lower  Styria,  where  it  occurs  in  great  quantities  as  a  part  of 
a  browncoal  deposit,  having  a  total  thickness  of  over  three  hundred 
feet,  it  is  charred  in  ovens  arranged  for  the  recovery  of  the  by-products 
as  well  as  the  charcoal.  The  charcoal  made  here  is  used  in  iron  smelt- 
ing. 

Where  the  lignite  occurs  in  smaller  quantities,  as  in  the  province  of 
Saxony  and  on  the  Rhine,  it  is  used  with  the  browncoals  under  steam 
boilers  and  for  various  other  fuel  purposes. 

COMMON    BROWNCOAL. 

The  Schweelcoal,  as  has  already  been  stated,  contains  large  amounts 
of  tarry  matter,  and  for  this  reason  is  especially  desired  by  the  Schweel- 
eries  or  factories  which  manufacture  from  it  the  tar  and  its  derivatives, 
paraffine  and  oils  of  various  grades.  These  oils  vary  in  quality  from 
one  especially  adapted  for  the  manufacture  of  gas  for  lighting  pur- 
poses, through  heavy  and  light  oils  to  a  solar  oil  about  equivalent  to 


4  UTILIZATION   OF   LIGNITES. 

our  best  refined  petroleum.  While  the  introduction  of  American  and 
Russian  petroleum  into  Germany  has  in  some  measure  checked  the 
working  of  the  Schweeleries  for  oil  purposes,  the  demand  for  paraffine 
is  so  great  as  to  keep  the  factories  still  at  full  work.  This  industry, 
as  shown  by  the  statistics  given,  is  one  of  great  importance  to  these 
districts  of  Germany,  amounting  as  it  does  to  over  four  millions  of 
dollars  annually  and  giving  employment  to  several  thousand  men. 
The  records  of  the  German  Browncoal  Association  show  that  in  the 
year  1890  the  amount  of  browncoal  used  by  the  companies  belonging 
to  the  association  for  the  manufacture  of  tar  and  paraffine  was  over 
twenty  millions  hectolitres,  and  the  value  of  -the  product  seventeen 
million  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  marks  ($4,280,000. )  The 
coke  made  from  the  Schweelcoal  by  this  process  is  called  '  'grude  coke, ' ' 
and  experience  has  proved  it  to  be  such  an  excellent  fuel  for  house- 
hold purposes  that  the  demand  is  in  excess  of  the  supply.  It  is  used 
in  stoves  of  special  construction  for  cooking  and  heating.  It  is  of  too 
fine  a  grain  and  not  compact  enough  to  be  of  any  use  in  smelting  iron. 

The  earthy  browncoal  is  used  "raw,"  or  as  it  is  mined,  for  house- 
hold, manufacturing,  or  steam  purposes,  and  is  also  manufactured 
i,nto  nass-press-stein  and  briquettes. 

Nass-press-stein,  or  coal  bricks,  are  made  by  mixing  the  browncoal 
with  water  until  it  is  of  a  putty  like  consistency,  compressing  by  ma- 
chinery similar  to  that  used  in  making  pressed  brick,  and  then  drying 
these  brick  in  the  air.  While  the  amount  of  this  fuel  is  small  in  com- 
parison with  that  of  briquettes  made  by  the  dry  method,  it  is  never- 
theless a  useful  and  serviceable  fuel  for  household  purposes. 

Dry  briquettes,  made  from  this  variety  of  browncoal,  are  in  great 
demancl,  and  the  output  is  increasing  yearly.  The  process  of  manu- 
facture consists  of  frying  the  browncoal  by  one  of  the  several  methods 
until  the  water  contained  in  it  is  reduced  to  a  certain  percentage  and 
then  compressing  it  under  a  pressure  equal  to  that  of  fifteen  hundred 
to  two  thousand  atmospheres.  The  resulting  briquette  is  of  a  lozenge 
or  elliptical  shape,  some  six  inches  in  length  and  about  one  inch  in 
thickness,  very  firm  and  durable.  The  compression  is  so  perfect  that 
the  briquette  will  not  absorb  water  even  if  it  be  laid  in  it  for  some 
time.  The  earthy  browncoal  is  preferred  for  briquette  making  on  ac- 
count of  the  ease  with  which  it  is  pulverized. 

In  a  raw  state  browncoal  is  also  used  for  burning  bricks,  stoneware, 
and  drain  tile,  for  which  purposes  it  is  preferred  to  any  other  fuel. 
Brick  clays  and  fire  clays  are  often  found  in  close  proximity  to  the 
browncoal,  and  the  manufacture  of  bricks,  fire  brick  and  tiles,  at  an 
extremely  lowr  price,  is  thus  rendered  practicable,  and  a  great  number 
of  mines  have  brick  yards  in  connection  with  them  by  means  of  which 
they  are  enabled  to  make  use  of  all  their  coal,  even  what  would  other- 
wise be  refuse. 

At  one  of  the  larger  brick  works  on  the  Rhine  the  experience  of 
several  years  trial  proved  that  a  firing  with  a  mixture  of  browncoal 
briquettes  and  raw  browncoal  gave  better  results  in  actual  work  than 
stone  coal  alone,  stone  coal  with  briquettes,  or  stone  coal  and  raw 
browncoal,  and  at  the  time  of  my  visit  works  were  just  being  com- 
pleted for  briquetting  their  browncoal  for  use  in  this  manner. 

In  using  this  earthy  browncoal  for  such  firing  purposes,  or  under 
steam  boilers  and  elsewhere,  due  attention  is  given  to  the  arrangement 
of  the  fire-boxes  and  grates  to  suit  the  fuel.  If  a  flat  grate  is  used  the 


UTILIZATION   OF   LIGNITES. 

grate  bars  are  made  very  narrow  and  with  small  intervals  between 
each.  The  favorite  grate,  however,  is  called  the  "treppen  rost,"  and 
is  a  grate  arranged  in  a  series  of  steps  by  which  the  air  gets  proper 
access  to  the  browncoal  without  need  of  a  blast  sufficient  to  carry- 
away  the  smaller  particles  unburned. 

For  household  purposes  stoves  of  suitable  construction  for  cooking 
and  heating,  using  raw  browncoal  or  briquettes  as  fuel,  are  for  sale 
everywhere  in  Germany.  The  briquettes  are  preferred  for  fuel  on  ac- 
count of  their  cleanliness  and  freedom  from  smoke  in  burning. 

The  comparative  extent  of  the  use  of  the  various  fuels  in  the  ordi- 
nary way  may  be  seen  from  the  statistics  of  the  fuel  supply  qf  the 
City  of  Berlin  for  the  year  1890,  taken  from  the  annual  report  of  the 
Kohlenzeitung: 

Stone  coal,  coke,  etc. 1,755,383  tons. 

Bohemian  browncoal 242,027  tons. 

German  browncoal  briquettes. 577,674  tons. 

German  browncoal 21,534  tons. 


Total  browncoal S41.235  tons. 

or  about  thirty-one  per  cent  of  the  entire  fuel  supply. 

A  great  many  tests  have  been  made  to  determine  the  ratio  of  fuel 
value  of  the  German  browncoal  and  stone  coal.  The  results  give  the 
ratio  between  the  Westphalian  coal  and  earthy  browncoal  and  briquettes 
about  the  following  relation  in  amounts  required  to  produce  the  same 
amount  of  steam: 

Westphalian  Coal.          German  Browncoal.  Briquettes. 

1.  2  to  2^  l;<tol^ 

The  Bohemian  browncoal  contains  less  moisture  than  the  common 
browncoal  of  Germany,  and  is  therefore  a  better  fuel  in  its  raw  state. 
Throughout  Bohemia  it  is  put  to  every  use — domestic,  manufacturing 
or  metallurgical — for  which  stone  coal  is  used,  except  the  smelting  of 
iron  ores  and  production  of  pig  iron.  The  locomotives,  which  have 
very  heavy  work  over  the  mountain  railways,  use  it  exclusively. 
Brick  works,  chemical  works,  glass  factories,  firebrick  and  tile  works, 
potteries,  cement  factories  and  limekilns  are  all  run  successfully  and 
economically  with  this  browncoal  as  their  only  fuel.  It  is  used  as  fuel 
exclusively  by  the  largest  iron  and  steel  works  of  the  country  for  the 
processes  of  converting  pig  iron  into  wrought  iron  and  steel  and  for 
rolling  this  into  rails,  bars,  wire,  sheet  iron  and  all  similar  products. 

The  use  of  this  fuel  in  this  manner  was  made  possible  by  a  close 
technical  study  of  its  character  and  a  practical  application  of  the  results 
to  manufacturing  purposes.  The  construction  of  the  fireboxes  and 
grates  is  such  that  the  necessary  conditions  to  its  best  utilization  are 
fulfilled,  and  when  high  heats  are  wanted  for  smelting  iron  or  heating 
ingots,  as  in  the  manufacture  of  wrought  iron  and  steel  and  in  rolling 
mill  work  generally,  gas  firing  is  resorted  to. 

This  kind  of  firing,  which  is  the  one  most  generally  in  use  with  the 
browncoal  for  all  purposes  where  the  higher  temperatures  are  required, 
has  several  different  methods  of  application,  varying  with  the  purpose 
for  which  the  heat  is  required,  but  all  having  the  same  general  principle 
at  the  foundation. 

The  browncoal  is  first  converted  into  gas  by  burning  in  a  producer 
of  some  description,  usually  a  rectangular  firebox  with  treppen  rost 


6  UTILIZATION   OF   LIGNITES. 

grate,  fed  from  above.  The  gases  produced  in  burning  are  carried  off 
by  proper  conduits,  the  tarry  matters  separated,  in  part  at  least,  by 
passing  through  an  hydraulic  main,  and  the  remaining  fixed  gases  pass 
either  directly  to  the  turnace  or  more  often  through  a  Siemens  re- 
generative furnace  to  the  place  where  they  are  burned.  Here  they 
are  mixed  with  heated  air  and  the  heat  produced  by  the  combustion  is 
ample  for  any  and  all  purposes  for  which  it  may  be  required.  The 
Bohemian  browncoal  has  also  been  successfully  briquetted  after  the 
German  or  dry  method,  already  mentioned,  and  a  factory  has  been  in 
operation  for  several  years  at  Koenigsberg,  near  Carlsbad. 

This  coal  has  also  been  coked  by  several  methods,  but  up  to  the 
present  time  the  coke  has  not  been  brought  into  use  as  fuel.  In 
some  places  this  was  prevented  by  the  character  of  the  coke  itself, 
which  was  unsuited  for  blast  furnace  purposes.  In  other  cases, 
when  the  coke  was  suitable  for  such  use,  the  cost  of  producing  it  was 
so  great  that  it  could  not  successfully  compete  with  the  cheap  Silesian 
coke  from  stone  coal. 

In  Styria  there  is  found  a  still  drier  browncoal  which  in  places  very 
closely  resembles  jet.  It  is  probably  the  equivalent  of  our  Laredo  coal, 
except  that  it  contains  very  much  less  ash.  This  browncoal  is  of  ex- 
cellent quality,  and  has  also  been  coked  by  methods  similar  to  those 
used  with  the  Bohemian,  but  the  coke  is  not  in  use  at  present  for  the 
same  reasons  given  above.  It  has,  however,  been  found  not  only  prac- 
ticable but  economical  to  use  thirty  per  cent  and  upward  of  this  raw  coal 
in  connection  with  coke  from  stone  coal  in  the  blast  furnace  for  smelt- 
ing iron  ore  and  there  are  iron  furnaces  which  have  been  in  operation 
for  years  using  this  character  of  fuel. 

This  browncoal,  mixed  with  a  lignitic  coal,  is  used  in  the  same 
vicinity  for  rolling  mills,  steel  and  wrought  iron  production,  etc.  The 
browncoal  of  Bohemia  and  Styria  is  also  used  in  the  manufacture  of 
gas  for  lighting  purposes.  It  is  distilled  in  retorts  of  the  usual 
form  and  the  operation  differs  in  nowi.se  from  that  with  ordinary  bitu- 
minous coal,  except  that  the  heated  air  from  the  furnace  is  used  to 
evaporate  the  surplus  moisture  from  the  raw  browncoal  before  it  is  put 
in  the  retort.  The  gas  coke  made  from  the  browncoal  in  Bohemia  is 
sold  for  u.se  in  the  zinc  works. 

In  Styria  a  browncoal  similar  to  that  of  Texas  is  briquetted  with  a 
bond  of  stone  coal  pitch.  Only  the  smalls  are  used,  because  there  is 
usually  a  demand  for  all  the  lump  coal  that  can  be  mined  throughout 
this  whole  region  and  the  briquette  industry  is  therefore  not  needed. 
The  briquettes  are,  notwithstanding,  sold  at  a  price  fully  equal  to  that 
of  stone  coal.  The  system  used  is  the  Coufinhal,  and  the  briquettes 
are  like  those  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Survey,  which  were  made 
during  my  earlier  experiments. 

From  these  facts  it  will  be  seen  that  the  browncoals  of  Germany  and 
Austria  are  not  only  adapted  for  use  as  fuel  for  all  purposes,  but  that 
they  are  so  used,  and  used  successfully.  Moreover,  the  statistics  show 
conclusively  that  the  browncoal  industry  of  Germany  and  Austria  is 
one  of  very  great  magnitude,  and  it  will  be  shown  by  a  comparison  of 
statistics  for  twenty  or  thirty  years  past  that  the  increase  in  the  pro- 
duction of  browncoal  has  kept  fully  abreast  of  that  of  stone  coal. 


UTILIZATION   OF    LIGNITES.  < 

COMPARISON   OF  EUROPEAN   AND  TEXAS   LIGNITES. 

As  stated  in  the  beginning  of  this  report,  I  have  compared  our 
Texas  lignites  with  those  of  Germany  and  Austria,  and  find  that  we 
have  representatives  of  the  various  classes  mentioned.  I  have  per- 
sonally examined  the  various  classes  of  browncoal  as  they  occur  in 
the  deposits,  as  they  come  from  the  mine,  and  as  they  are  used  in 
their  various  applications,  and  I  have  compared  them  with  our  Texas 
lignites,  both  in  their  physical  character  and  chemical  composition, 
with  the  result  as  stated.  I  have  submitted  average  specimens  of  our 
Texas  browncoals  to  the  highest  authorities  on  this  subject  in  Ger- 
many and  Austria,  and  they,  without  exception,  confirm  my  state- 
ment, and  unite  in  pronouncing  the  Texas  browncoals  of  excellent 
quality,  fully  equal  to  the  Bohemian,  and  equally  suitable  for  use  for 
all  domestic,  industrial  and  metallurgical  purposes.  I  have  therefore 
the  pleasure  of  reiterating  the  statement  made  several  times  already, 
and  each  time  supported  by  stronger  evidence,  that  Texas  has  in  the 
immense  deposits  of  browncoal  a  cheap  fuel  which  can  be  used  for 
every  purpose  for  which  fuel  is  needed. 

It  should,  however,  be  plainly  understood  in  the  beginning,  that 
the  browncoals  of  Texas  will  be  found  to  differ  very  widely  in  quality, 
and  it  will  require  analyses  of  each  deposit  to  tell  with  certainty  for 
what  purpose  it  is  best  adapted.  Deposits  will  be  found  containing 
too  large  a  percentage  of  ash,  an,d  some  perhaps  too  large  a  percentage 
of  sulphur,  to  be  of  value  as  fuel,  although  other  uses  may  be  found 
for  them.  Those  that  are  suited  for  briquetting  without  bond  may 
not  serve  equally  well  for  other  purposes,  and  some  of  the  varieties  of 
browrncoal  will  not  form  a  briquette  at  all  by  the  dry  method. 

It  is  impossible,  with  detached  basins  of  browncoal,  formed  under 
somewhat  diverse  conditions  and  stretching  across  an  area  seven 
hundred  miles  in  length,  that  all  should  be  equally  good.  That  there 
is  an  abundance  of  the  material  that  is  of  a  most  excellent  quality  is 
shown  by  the  examinations  and  analyses  already  made  by  the  Survey 
of  deposits  and  specimens  from  all  portions  of  the  lignite  belt,  and  yet 
other  of  these  analyses  also  prove  the  existence  of  deposits  which  are 
comparatively  worthless. 

Therefore,  in  any  undertaking  having  browncoal  as  its  basis  of 
supply,  either  as  fuel  or  raw  material  for  manufacturing  purposes,  an 
accurate  knowledge  of  the  material  should  be  obtained  before  opera- 
tions are  begun. 

UTILIZATION  OF  TEXAS   BROWNCOAL. 

The  fact  of  the  great  fuel  value  of  the  browncoal  having  been  thus 
fully  decided,  I  have  endeavored  to  secure  all  possible  information, 
and  when  practicable  the  detailed  drawings  or  plans  of  the  various 
kinds  of  ovens,  fireboxes,  grates  and  appliances  for  using  browncoal. 
Some  of  these  are  the  subjects  of  patents,  and  can  therefore  only  be 
used  under  royalty  or  purchase;  others,  and  some  of  these  the  most 
important,  are  not  patented  and  are  free  to  all. 

Through  the  kindness  of  the  owners  of  the  iron  works  and  rolling 
mills  in  Bohemia  and  Styria.  I  have  secured  plans  in  detail  of  the  fire- 
boxes, gas  producers,  and  arrangements  by  means  of  which  they  use 
the  raw  browncoal  for  the  purposes  stated.  I  have  also  the  plan  of  the 


S  UTILIZATION   OP  LIGNITES. 

blast  furnaces  which  are  now  in  operation  using  a  mixed  fuel  of  coke 
and  raw  browncoal. 

From  the  manufacturers  of  locomotives  I  will  have  detailed  plans  of 
the  fireboxes  used  on  such  locomotives  as  are  intended  for  browncoal. 
All  of  these  plans  and  methods  are  applicable  for  the  use  of  our  Texas 
browncoal  for  similar  purposes. 

The  machinery  for  the  production  of  briquettes  by  the  dry  method  is 
manufactured  in  Germany,  the  most  of  it  under  patents.  General 
descriptions  and  estimates  of  the  cost  of  erection  are  in  the  office. 

Presses  and  machinery  for  the  production  of  briquettes  using  pitch  as 
a  bond  are  manufactured  in  Germany,  France  and  England.  I  have 
plans  and  estimates  of  the  different  styles  and  sizes  of  these  showing 
approximate  cost  of  erection  and  operation. 

Plants  for  the  production  of  tar,  paraffine,  oils,  etc. ,  from  the  brown- 
coals  are  of  a  much  more  complex  nature.  General  plans  and  estimates 
are  now  in  the  office,  and  details  will  be  furnished  me  as  soon  as  they 
can  be  prepared. 

Some  of  the  principal  uses  of  our  browncoal  will  undoubtedly  be  in 
the  manufacture  of  brick,  firebrick,  drain  tile,  paving  tile,  stoneware, 
pottery,  glassware,  cement  and  lime.  Plans  for  the  construction  of 
ovens  especially  designed  for  these  purposes  and  in  successful  use  in 
Germany  with  browncoal  firing  are  also  being  prepared. 

All  of  these  are  at  the  service  of  those  interested  in  the  subject. 

It  can  be  stated  now  from  experiments  and  analyses  already  made, 
both  by  private  individuals  and  by  the  Survey,  that  we  know  that  we 
have  in  the  Texas  browncoals  certain  varieties  that  are  rich  in  tarry 
matter  which  will  serve  as  a  source  of  paraffine,  and  that  some  varieties 
can  be  briquetted  with  pitch  as  a  bond  and  others  by  the  dry  method  • 

Special  examinations  and  tests  of  our  Texas  browncoal  by  the  largest 
browncoal  manufacturing  establishment  in  Europe,  by  the  various 
methods  of  briquette  manufacture  in  Germany  and  France,  and  by 
other  specialists  are  now  in  progress,  and  as  soon  as  their  final  reports 
are  received  the  results  will  be  published,  together  with  the  details  of 
the  various  plants,  estimates  of  the  cost  of  erection,  operation,  etc. 

AUSTIN,  TEXAS,  November,  18,  1891. 


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